The How I Met Your Mother spinoff may have named its lead actor, but the long-running hit comedy is cashing in with a whopping $500,000 for ad slots during its final-ever episode in March.

After nine seasons, the last show featuring Ted, Barney and co will broadcast in the United States on March 31.

It's not quite Seinfeld territory, which racked up a phenonmenal $1.8 million for 30-second slots for its finale in 1998, but tops HIMYM's average cost of about $170,000 a slot, Variety reports.

How I Met Your Dad star Greta Gerwig. Photo: Getty Images

The multi-award winning show has been running since 2005 and stars Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan and Cobie Smulders in an offbeat, quirky take on the challenges of work and dating in New York.

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Indie actor Greta Gerwig, who scored a Golden Globe nomination for her role in offbeat comedy Frances Ha, was announced yesterday as the lead for the hotly anticipated How I Met Your Mother spinoff.

A pilot of How I Met Your Dad was given the greenlight last year.

Gerwig will play Sally, described as "a female Peter Pan who has never grown up and has no idea of where she's going in life". The character discovers she has nothing in common with her husband of a year, and turns to her friends and family for support.

Gerwig is a somewhat surprising choice for the highly popular mainstream show given her relatively low-key indie profile. However commentators have said TV executives are excited at the prospect of copying the path of another hipster queen Zooey Deschanel, who transitioned to huge TV success with New Girl.

How I Met Your Mother creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas will write and executive produce the new show as a joint effort with Up All Night, Saturday Night Live and Modern Family writer Emily Spivey. Gerwig is also expected to write and produce.

11 comments

Not watching anything one Zooey dechanel is quite enough thanks.

Maybe they could get Wes Anderson to direct it with some thrift store quirky charm.

Commenter

The brown note

Date and time

February 13, 2014, 10:31AM

I really can't see this working unless it is brilliantly scripted. Used to love HIMYM but the last couple of seasons have been very patchy and tired with only a couple of quality episodes in each series. Like most great shows it has probably gone on a couple of seasons too long.

Commenter

Tired Viewer

Location

Date and time

February 13, 2014, 11:16AM

Agreed, I think they went on 3 seasons too long

Commenter

Steve

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Date and time

February 13, 2014, 12:29PM

Agreed. The latest season has been nothing but filler. I'm just watching through to the end because I've watched the rest of it.

I give the spinoff show less than a season before its axed. I'm not going to bother to watch it.

Commenter

J

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Date and time

February 13, 2014, 4:00PM

For the new series I think they should have used one of Ted's ex girlfriends (who are all generally beauitful) as the 'new mother'. Josh Radnor could then have played a cameo as one of her early boyfriends that didnt work out.

Commenter

Barney

Location

New York

Date and time

February 13, 2014, 11:18AM

Ted Mosby is to me the most pathetic character I have had the displeasure to see that is the 'star' of sitcom. Pathetic needy sook of a man. Otherwise not a badly written show with good supporting cast. Segal, who is brilliant and good ol Doogey are the reasons to watch the show. Smulders is annoying as well.

Commenter

Garrett

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Sydney

Date and time

February 13, 2014, 12:05PM

You are watching it wrong! I have never considered Ted as the star of HIMYM. He is the centre of the show, but not the star. He is the least interesting character and just facilitates the others.

Commenter

Chris

Location

Sydney

Date and time

February 13, 2014, 1:09PM

Greta Gerwig is to Zooey Deschanel as Daniel Day-Lewis is to Sam Worthington - not comparable. Deschanel, while great in 500 Days of Summer, has made a name for herself out of kooky quirkiness (kirkiness). Gerwig, on the other hand, is a writer, director and, if you watch Frances Ha, an actress capable of great tragicomic, serious roles, something you could not say of Deschanel. Part of me is sad Gerwig is moving to a sitcom, but another part of me is excited as it means I'll get to see more of her.

Commenter

janeygotagun

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Date and time

February 13, 2014, 12:19PM

I take it all back. My apologies for tarring her with the Zooey brush.

Commenter

The brown note

Date and time

February 13, 2014, 1:11PM

Disagree with a lot of your comments. This season has been one of the best. Quirky, yes! Entertaining and clever (my opinion), definitely. One of the only shows I download and watch regularly.